Summer Reading

There's something about these chairs that appeals to me. They were very hard to paint because of all the angles and I'm not really satisfied with the perspective. I based this on a photo I took last summer.

I like the painterliness (made up word) of it, but it looks like an illustration to me which is not what I wanted. The angle of the table top is off as well. But the light and composition are pretty good.

I might try to make the light on the chair on the left more pronounced and add some light to the flowers next to the house. The ones in the front should have more light on them.

I think I might, just might, be over my looooong slump.

Work in Progress

This is what's on my easel today. I'm painting from a photo that I took this summer at the cottage we rented. I'm doing something different with this painting (every painting I try something different) - I'm starting by blocking in the large color areas with thin layers of paint mixed with mineral spirits. First I painted the entire canvas orange using acryllic, which, if I don't completely cover it up, should give the whole painting a warmer feeling. I'm trying to get across the feeling of a warm summer day.

The chairs are a bit tough because of the angles - and I painted out the trunk of the tree so I could work on the background without muddying it up with the brown from the tree. I'm also changing a few things - there is no house in the background, but it sort of painted itself in :)

Since I took this photo I've removed and restarted the chairs. They are the focal point of the picture so I need them to be right.